Ode to a Forward-Thinking America: Columbus, Indiana

It comes as no surprise to followers of midcentury modernism that Columbus, Indiana, is one of the most important design destinations in America. A laboratory of ideas spurred in the 1940s and 1950s by the patronage of the forward-thinking Miller family and its Cummins Engine Foundation, the city of 46,000 is home to a staggering number of public works created by the most recognizable names in 20th-century architecture: Saarinen, Roche, Weese, Noyes, Pei, and Pelli, among many others. The city demonstrates how an enlightened practice of culture can alter history and change lives. Here, we present but a tiny glimpse of Columbus and nod to its future.